EACC Bylaws

EACC Bylaws

ARTICLE I—PREAMBLE

We the professional personnel of the public schools of Charles County, Maryland, establish this Association in order to promote the highest standards of education in our county by the cooperative and independent action of a professional organization. We are concerned with the welfare of teachers as it affects the quality of education in this county. All of our immediate goals will be directed ultimately toward the welfare of public school children in Charles County.

ARTICLE II NAME

The name of the organization shall be the Education Association of Charles County. It shall also be known as the EACC.

ARTICLE III AFFILIATION

This Association shall be affiliated with the Maryland State Education Association and with the National Education Association.

ARTICLE IV PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

The purpose of the EACC shall be:

Section 1: to pursue the health, professional and economic welfare of educators and to achieve a public education system that promotes student, community and teacher empowerment in the pursuit of individualized educational opportunity for all students.

Section 2: to develop a united membership that works pro – actively in achieving the overall welfare of educators and students,

Section 3: to communicate and involve members and community in achieving employment and educational objectives

Section 5: to unify and strengthen school employees as to enable members to speak with a common voice on issues pertaining to education and to represent individual and common concerns of members before the Board of Education and all appropriate bodies elected and appointed.

Section 6: to develop and promote a continuing program to secure and maintain better employment benefits, uniform practices, and improvements in terms and conditions of employment.

ARTICLE V MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. There shall be four classes of membership in the Association: Annual Retired, Lifetime Retired, Regular and Honorary.

Annual retired members will pay dues each year in order to belong to NEA/MSEA/ EACC.

Retired life members will pay a onetime lump sum before retirement to retain continuous membership in NEA/ MSEA and EACC.

Annual and Retired life members may not vote or hold office in EACC, but may enjoy all other benefits of membership, including attendance of meetings, professional development, publications, and other social events.

Regular membership shall be open to all certificated professional employees and ROTC instructors of the Board of Education of Charles County upon payment of annual dues to the EACC/MSEA/NEA. Professional employees on leave from the Board of Education of Charles County who were members of the Association the year preceding their leave of absence may, upon payment of annual dues, maintain their membership.

Honorary Membership: The Representative Assembly may bestow Honorary Membership upon friends of the Association. Honorary Members shall be exempt from paying dues. They will enjoy all rights and privileges of membership in the EACC except the right to hold office and vote.

A retired member shall be appointed by a simple majority of the executive board to serve as the liaison between the Executive Board and retired members. The retired liaison will not be considered a board member and will not have the right to vote.

Annual and lifetime retired membership shall be opened to retired teachers provided the retirees were active members in the EACC two years immediately prior to retiring.

Section 2. Membership shall be continuous until the member leaves Charles County Public School system, resigns from the Association, or fails to pay membership dues. The membership year shall be September 1 to August 31. In order to effect a resignation, a member must notify the Association in writing, postmarked by September 10 of his/her intent to resign membership.

Section 3. Membership dues of the Association shall be no more than one half of 1% of the salary paid for Level 2 under B.A. Degree or A.P.C column of the negotiated contract for the year in question; an increase in excess of the amount above may be approved by a 2/3 vote of the Representative Assembly.

Section 4. Annual dues for a person eligible for regular membership who is regularly employed fifty (50) percent or less of the normal schedule for a full time faculty member shall be one half (1/2) the dues of a regular member.

Section 5. Payroll deduction of dues is continuing and cancellation of dues deduction can be effectuated only by written notice to the EACC as provided by the Negotiated Agreement.

ARTICLE VI OFFICERS

Section 1. The officers of this Association shall be President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, and Treasurer. Only regular members of the Association may hold these offices or vote in the election of officers.

Section 2. The terms of office shall be three (3) years beginning July 1 following their election, and shall continue through June 30 of the year in which a properly qualified successor is elected beginning with officers whose terms begin effective July 1, 2009. Officers shall serve no more than two consecutive terms. In the event no properly qualified successor files to run for a given office by the established deadline, the current officer shall continue to serve until the Representative Assembly can fill the position per Section 6.

Section 3. To be eligible to become President a member must be a member of the EACC at the time of the nomination and for the two years immediately prior to the nomination.

Section 4. To be eligible for an office other than the President in this Association a member must be a member of the EACC at the time of the nomination and for the year immediately prior.

Section 5. All officers must be members of the Association during their term of office.

Section 6. A vacancy in any elected office other than President shall be filled by the Representative Assembly until the next regularly scheduled election unless more than one (1) year remains on the term. In the latter case, the Representative Assembly may appoint a replacement until a special election may be held within two (2) months of declaring a vacancy, where possible. One year or less of a term of office does not constitute one of the two consecutive terms to which an elected officer of the EACC is limited.

ARTICLE VII DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1. The President shall be the full time Executive Officer of the Association.

The President shall preside at all meetings of this Association and shall call special meetings when necessary.

The President shall be an ex officio member of all committees except for the Nominations, Elections, and Credentials Committee.

The President shall appoint all committees except the Nomination, Election, and Credentials Committee and give a charge of duties to each standing and special committee of the Association.

The President shall serve as Delegate to the MSEA and the NEA Representative Assembly as well as Chairperson of the Delegation to the MSEA/NEA Conventions.

Except as provided for in Section 3 the President shall be responsible for all records of the Association.

The President shall be responsible for having the books audited by a CPA annually. He/She shall present the audit to the Executive Board at the September meeting.

The President shall prepare, with the advice and assistance of the Executive Board, the agendas for Board meetings, Representative Assembly meetings, and General membership meetings.

At the completion of the term the President may agree to remain as a resource when called upon.

The President shall serve as spokesperson for the Association on policy matters.

The President shall report at each meeting of the Board of Directors and Representative Assembly as to his/her activities.

Section 2. The Vice President shall perform the duties of the President whenever the President is absent.

The Vice President shall assume the office of President and complete the unexpired term should the office become vacant.

The Vice-President shall attend monthly representative assemblies, monthly executive board meetings, and serve as a liaison for all standing committees.

The Vice-President shall assist the President with executive duties as necessary.

Section 3. The Recording Secretary shall keep complete records of all official proceedings of this Association, and shall distribute copies of such proceedings as directed by the President.

Section 4. The Treasurer is responsible for the overseeing of the receipt and depositing of association funds in the bank. Funds shall be disbursed within the limits of the Budget only with the signatures of two (2) of the following: the Treasurer, the Vice President and the President.

The Treasurer shall keep records of deposits, income, and expenditures by budget category. The Treasurer shall assist in the preparation of the Association’s annual budget and prepare a monthly financial statement of the funds of the Association.

The Treasurer shall be a member of the Membership Committee and of the Budget Committee.

The Treasurer shall report to the Board of Directors and the Representative Assembly all Association receipts and disbursements.

ARTICLE VIII REPRESENTATIVE ASSEMBLY

Section 1. The allocation of representatives to the Representative Assembly shall consist of the Officers of the Association, the members at large of the executive board, and the representatives from each school. The Administrative and Supervisory staff of the Board of Education shall be considered as one unit. Each school or unit shall be entitled to one or more representatives according to the number of its staff who are current members of the Association. There shall be one representative for every 15 members or major fraction thereof. For purposes of this calculation membership totals shall be those of January 1 of the year of election. The Association members in each school and at the Board of Education shall elect their delegate by September 1 of each year. Additional representatives may be elected if membership drive totals exceed the January 1 totals enough to qualify units for additional representation. The units shall also elect one alternate for each delegate. Every attempt shall be made to ensure the ethnic minority representation within the Representative Assembly shall be equal to the percentage of ethnic minority membership within the association.

Section 2. Representatives shall be elected for a term of one year and upon election shall be deemed as an “accredited” Representative of that school/unit. Representatives shall serve from September 1 to August 31 and may succeed themselves.

Section 3. No Executive Board Member of the Association may serve as a representative from his/her school / unit.

Section 4. All legislative authority of this Association except where otherwise stated shall be vested in the Representative Assembly. In addition to legislative responsibility the representatives from each unit shall be responsible for communication between the unit and the Association. Representatives shall also be responsible for the enrollment of members of the Association.

Section5. The Representative Assembly, comprised of members of the Association, derives its power from, and shall be responsible to the membership. The duties of the Representative Assembly include the adopting of rules and the agenda governing its meetings, the establishing of Association policies and objectives; the adopting of the annual budget and the establishing of dues, filling of vacancies as specified herein; and adopting guidelines for nominations and elections.

Section6. Representatives shall present to the Representative Assembly petitions, proposals, or resolutions at the request of a majority of the members they represent.

Section 7. The Representative Assembly shall meet regularly each month from September to May on dates as set by the body at its first meeting. Special meetings may be called by the President and Executive Board. Any member may attend meetings of the Representative Assembly and speak to a motion, but only accredited representatives and Executive Board members may vote.

Section8. A quorum of the Representative Assembly shall consist of one third of the accredited reps.

Section 9. All appointive bodies of the Association shall be designated by the term “committee”. A Committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials, shall be established by the Representative Assembly. All other appointive Committees shall be established or discontinued as provided by in Article XIV section 1. The Representative Assembly shall at its September meeting elect from its membership a committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials. This committee shall be responsible for the conduct of all elections and be the final judge of all elections in the Association and for the accreditation of delegates to the Representative Assembly.

Section 10. The Representative Assembly shall exercise final authority in all matters of the Association by amending the Bylaws in accordance with Article XIX.

Section 11. Robert’s Rules of Order, Latest Revision, shall be the governing authority on all matters of procedure not otherwise provided for in the Bylaws.

ARTICLE IX EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section 1. There shall be a representative body with full executive power to be known as the Executive Board. This Board shall consist of the elected officers plus six (6) members at large elected for a term of three years each. Members at large shall serve no more than two consecutive terms beginning with those officers elected to take office July 1, 2009.

Section 2. In the event that the ethnic minority representation on the Executive Board is not equal to the percentage of ethnic minority membership within the association, the Executive Board shall be expanded by additional members –at- large to meet the percentage. In this case, the Representative Assembly shall vote after appropriate nominations are sought in the special election. This seat will be held until the next general election, or one term of three years until the minority representation is met.

Section 3. A. A retired EACC member shall be appointed by a simple majority of the Executive Board to serve as the liaison between retired members and the executive board. The retired member shall not have the right to vote on the Executive Board. The retired member on the Board will serve for a term of three years and may be renewed as needed.

Section 3. B. A Unit II member with supervisory/evaluative responsibilities shall be elected to fill one of the six (6) member at large positions. In the event that no one runs for this member at large position, the position will remain vacant until the next election.

Section 5. The Executive Board shall be responsible for the management of the Association. It shall review all expenditures as adopted in the budget by the Representative Assembly. It shall have the power to adjust expenditures within major categories not to exceed five (5) percent of the total budget. It shall carry out the policies of the Representative Assembly and report its transactions to the Assembly and recommend policies for consideration by the Representative Assembly. It shall aid in the implementation of Policies established by the Representative Assembly and the Board; shall approve all committee appointments made by the President; and shall call special elections.

Section 6. The Executive Board may make a decision binding on the Association and may enter into contracts in the name of the Association, provided such actions are not contrary to the policies established by the Representative Assembly.

Section 7. The Executive Board shall develop and implement guidelines of meetings. It shall meet at least one week prior to the regular meeting of the Representative Assembly or when called by the President.

Section 8. The Executive Board shall be authorized to expend funds within the limits of the adopted budget.

Section 9. The Executive Board shall set goals for the Association, and upon approval of the Representative Assembly, proceed to implement them.

Section 10. A vacancy in any Executive Board office (officers or at large members) other than President shall be filled by the Representative Assembly until the next regularly scheduled election unless more than one (1) year remains on the term. In the latter case, the Representative Assembly may appoint a replacement until a special election may be held within two (2) months of declaring a vacancy, where possible. One year or less of a term of office does not constitute one of the two consecutive terms to which an Executive Board member of the EACC is limited.

ARTICLE X GENERAL MEETINGS

Section 1. Special meetings of the membership may be called by the President at the request of the Representative Assembly or on the written petition of any 100 Association members.

ARTICLE XI ELECTIONS

Section lA. The committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials shall provide for the election of the President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Treasurer, and six (6) members at large to the Executive Board, Delegates to the MSEA Representative Assembly (except as specified in Section 4) and Delegates to the National Education Association Representative Assembly and one (1) Representative to MSEA Fund for Children and Public Education as designated by the MSEA Guidelines by ballot of the entire regular membership. In addition, the Nominations, Elections, Elections, and Credentials Committee shall also provide for any other votes by membership except the vote on the Negotiated Agreement.

Section 1B. All members of the committee on Nominations, Elections and Credentials shall not sit on the Executive Board, be a building representative, or be an officer of the Association. Members may not run for office while they serve on the Nominations, Elections and Credentials Committee.

Section 2. The Committee shall present to the Representative Assembly at its February meeting all members properly nominated. The Representative Assembly may by a simple majority add names to this slate at the February meeting only if needed to achieve a minimum of one candidate per vacancy. A nominee must be a member in good standing with the United Education Profession. The filing deadline for nominations will be one week prior to the date of the February Representative Assembly.

Section 3. Following the February meeting of the Representative Assembly the Committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials shall conduct voting via an on-line system. All voting shall conclude prior to March 30. The Committee shall announce the results of the election to the Representative Assembly at its April meeting.

Section 4. Elections for an office of the Association or Member at Large of the Board shall also be considered to be an election to the position of State Delegate to the Representative Assembly of the Maryland State Education Association for the duration of such term of office. All remaining vacancies for Delegate and Alternates to the Maryland State Education Association Convention shall be chosen by the entire membership in the annual general elections.

Section 5. Elected officers shall be introduced at the May Representative Assembly and shall officially take office on July 1, and shall remain in office until June 30, after the election of a properly qualified successor.

Section 6. Voting shall be conducted on-line. The Committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials shall make provisions for a secret ballot election by the entire membership and facilitate and verify all elections results.

Section 7. The Committee shall prepare guidelines for the nomination accreditation of officers, delegates and other representatives on the Board of Directors, and election. The guidelines and an election calendar shall be presented annually to the Representative Assembly for review and adoption. The guidelines shall include but not be limited to open nominations, provision for the distribution and collection of nominating forms and preparation of the candidate slate, provision for the publication of the list of nominations prior to and during the election, provision for secret ballot election, provision for tally of the ballots, and provision of the officers and representatives of the Executive Board by a majority of the valid ballots cast or by acclamation where only one candidate is nominated.

Section 8. Special elections may be called by the Executive Board.

Section 9. The Committee shall be the final arbiter of election disputes. Said disputes must be presented to the Committee within five (5) workdays of the announcement of the results.

ARTICLE XII DELEGATES TO MSEA AND NEA CONVENTIONS

Section l. Delegates elected to the conventions of the MSEA and the NEA must be members of the Association during the year in which they serve as delegates. The President shall be a delegate to both assemblies. Every effort shall be made to ensure that the ethnic minority representation on the delegation shall be equal to the percentage of ethnic minority membership within the association.

Section 2. Delegates to both MSEA and NEA conventions are required to attend all scheduled caucus meetings, all business sessions, and vote at appointed times. Delegates are expected to stay for the entirety of the convention.

Section 3. In order to be reimbursed for expenses incurred at conventions proper documentation must be provided per EACC policy.

Section 4. Failure to fulfill the duties of a delegate as listed above will result in sanctions to be decided by the Executive Board.

ARTICLE XIII PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

Section 1. The President shall appoint, as needed, a parliamentarian who shall serve as advisor to the President in matters concerning these bylaws and all parliamentary matters.

Section 2. Unless inconsistent with these By laws and special Rules of Order, ROBERT’s RULES OF ORDER, latest revision, shall prevail at all meetings of the Board of Directors, Representative Assembly, and committees of the Association.

ARTICLE XIV COMMITTEES

Section 1A. All Committees may include any member of the EACC and shall be comprised of at least 75% classroom teachers. The President shall appoint all committees except the Committee on Nominations, Elections, and Credentials with approval of the Executive Board.

Section 1B. All members of the committee on Nominations, Elections and Credentials shall not hold elected office, including the Executive Board, building representative, or office of the Association. Members may not run for office while they serve on the Nominations, Elections and Credentials Committee.

Section 2. The President shall recommend members of the Association to the Maryland State Education Association for service on committees of that organization.

Section 3. A Budget committee shall be appointed to prepare an Association Budget for presentation to the Representative Assembly at its April meeting. Committee chairs will submit a budget for their respective committees to the Budget Committee by the first Wednesday of March for consideration.

Section 4. A Government Relations Committee shall be appointed to study and suggest legislation concerning public education, and to assist members in participation in the democratic process and to work with corresponding committees of the Maryland State Education Association and the National Education Association.

Section 5. A Committee on Public Relations shall be appointed to work to secure the best possible image of the Association and the Teaching Profession in Charles County with the general public and membership.

Section 6. A Membership Committee shall be appointed to plan a membership drive to be conducted by the members of the Representative Assembly. This Committee shall be responsible for membership records and for all collected money prior to transferring funds to the Treasurer of the Association. This committee shall be responsible for keeping the membership informed on Association activities. The Committee shall also plan for such social activities as may be appropriate and desirable for the Association.

Section 7. The Negotiations Committee shall be comprised of all members of the EACC. The Negotiations Committee shall provide input to the Bargaining Team through appropriate surveys and comments. The Bargaining Team Chair will be designated by the President and the Chief Negotiator. The Bargaining Team shall be appointed by the President in consultation with the Chief Negotiator and Bargaining Team Chair.

Section 8. A Bylaws Committee shall be appointed to evaluate continuously the provisions of the Bylaws and to made recommendations for amendments.

Section 9. A Minority and Human Civil Rights Committee shall be appointed to monitor compliance with the Association’s Affirmative Action Plan and assist members in correcting injustices that deny human rights to any segments of our society.

Section 10. An Instructional and Professional Development (IPD) Committee shall be appointed to consider matters concerning the general welfare and professional development of members as individuals and employees.

Section 11. An Audit Committee shall be appointed to oversee the general budget ledger and annual audit.

Section 12. Special Committees or task forces may be established by the Executive Board or upon the recommendation of the President, or the Representative Assembly.

Section 13. The President shall appoint, with the approval of the Executive Board, members of committees and task forces and shall designate the chairperson of each within forty five (45) days thereafter.

Section 14. Any member appointed to a standing or special committee except the Nominations, Elections, and Credentials Committee may be removed by the President with the approval of the Executive Board.

ARTICLE XV IMPEACHMENT

Section l. Officers of the Association or Board Members at Large may be impeached for violation of the “Code of Ethics of the Education Profession”, for an unlawful act, for misconduct in office, or for gross negligence in office.

Section 2. Impeachment proceedings against an officer or Board Members at Large may be initiated by written petition submitted to a Review Board by at least fifteen (15) percent of the certified delegates to the Representative Assembly. Upon receipt of the petition, the officer or Board member at large may be suspended pending further proceedings.

Section 3. If, after a due process hearing, a two thirds (2/3) vote of a Review Board shall sustain the charge, and ballots shall be prepared for the membership. A 2/3 vote of those voting shall be required to impeach and the office shall become vacant.

ARTICLE XVI REVIEW BOARD

Section 1. A Review Board shall be appointed by the Executive Board.

Section 2. A member of the Review Board shall hold no elective office, other than delegate, in the Association or its affiliates, nor any other appointive position in the Association.

Section 3. The Review Board shall adopt its own rules of procedure with the approval of the Representative Assembly.

Section 4. The Review Board shall have jurisdiction in a case of impeachment against an officer.

Section 5. The Review Board shall have jurisdiction in alleged violations of the “Code of Ethics of the Education Profession”.

Section 6. The Review Board shall have jurisdiction in the censure, suspension, or expulsion of a member.

Section 7. The Review Board shall have jurisdiction to review, as necessary, an action of the Executive Board or Representative Assembly for consistency with the Bylaws of this Association and to recommend remedial action, if necessary.

Section 8. Request for review may be made by the Executive Board or by a petition of ten (10) percent of the certified delegates of the Representative Assembly.

ARTICLE XVII FINANCES

Section 1. A Budget for the Association shall be adopted annually at the May meeting of the Representative Assembly. The Budget Committee shall have provided a preliminary report at least three (3) weeks prior to that meeting for the consideration of the Representative Assembly.

Section 2. The Fiscal Year shall be from July 1, to June 30.

Section 3. All officers, delegates, and committee members shall submit vouchers for reimbursement for all work-related travel incurred on behalf of the Association. For this purpose automobile travel shall be paid at the rate set in the Association Budget. In no case shall reimbursement be made beyond the budgetary allowances for travel.

ARTICLE XVIII AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to the Bylaws shall be proposed at a Representative Assembly meeting and shall be adopted by the membership by a two thirds (2/3) vote of those voting provided that a copy of the amendments has been given to the Association members at least 20 days prior to the vote.

ARTICLE XIX CONTRACT RATIFICATION

Section 1. A majority of active members voting is required in order to adopt the proposed contract.

Section 2. A proposed contract for ratification shall be distributed to members at least two (2) weeks prior to the ratification vote.

Section 3. Prior to the ratification vote at least one informational meeting for active members shall be held.

Section 4. The ratification of the proposed contract shall be voted on only by members of the EACC using an electronic voting system. Membership shall be determined by membership records produced in the month that the vote occurs. The Nominations & Credentials committee shall be responsible for verifying the vote.

Revised and adopted September 2012

Revised and adopted June 11, 2014

Revised and adopted June 10, 2015

Revised name of the Minority and Human Affairs Committee to Minority and Human Civil Rights Committee (editorial change of name only) by Executive Board vote on 10/07/2015.